It is known to use large industrial washing machines for washing parts; these are commonly known as “parts washers”. Examples include those shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,305,769 to Jung (power spray washing machine with enclosed wash cabinet positioned above a wash holding tank and a rinse holding tank); U.S. Pat. No. 6,016,818 to Evaro et al. (recirculating parts washer with a vertically mounted base and a sink and lid rotatably connected to the base); and U.S. Pat. No. 6,044,852 to Epperson, Jr. et al. (parts washer with a housing having a wash chamber charged with fluid, a spray tube rotatably positioned in the housing, and a support structure in the housing to support parts being washed within a volume of rotation of the spray tube).
A problem not adequately addressed by prior parts washers is the need in some businesses or industrial sectors to clean significant numbers of vehicle batteries, for example when maintaining the batteries in a fleet of vehicles, or when reconditioning, recycling, or reselling used batteries.
Vehicle batteries are typically large, heavy, and dirty, and are most commonly of the 12 v lead-acid type. They can be difficult and unpleasant to clean due to acid leakage, and environmental regulations can make disposal of the lead-contaminated wash and rinse water difficult and costly.